Cadillac STS Forum - 2005 through 2012 Discussion, Seat ventilation fans stopped working in Past Cadillac Vehicle Discussion; Weird but the cooling ventilation fans in both seats just simultaneously stopped working in my 2011 STS. They do make ...

Seat ventilation fans stopped working

Weird but the cooling ventilation fans in both seats just simultaneously stopped working in my 2011 STS. They do make a difference here in the desert.

Ventilation buttons light up and both heating functions seem to work and I was wondering if anyone might be able to point me in the right direction of which fuses may be involved here before I journey to dealerville. Checked the schematic in the manual and while I can find the fuses for the heating function, can't seem to locate them for the ventilation fan motors. Guessing they would be diff for driver/pass and I'm fearing it may be more of an electrical issue since they went out together.

Re: Seat ventilation fans stopped working

Hi spiketoo,

I can completely understand how this ventilation seat issue would be concerning where you live. I know you’re looking for some feedback at the moment, but if you choose to head to dealerville at a later point in time I would be happy to assist. Please keep us updated on how things progress.

Re: Seat ventilation fans stopped working

Weird there are no fuses labeled for ventilated seats.

There are two relays in the under hood fuse box labeled "cooling fan high speed" and "cooling fan series parallel." I suspect these have to do with the air conditioner but you can check these. After that I would just check the ones labeled heated driver and heated passenger.

Re: Seat ventilation fans stopped working

The ventilated seats basically run some computer fans and a plastic bag to pull air through the seat.
Its not too hard to take the back panel off of the seat its all held in by clips.
Sit in the back seat and pull the bottom of the panel towards you there should be some clips that release.
When you get to the top of the panel pull down towards the floor or you will break off some L shaped clips and you will be buying a new $300 part (panel replacement).
Once the seatback is open you can turn on the fans and see if they are working at all and with a voltmeter / test light you can see if there is power to the fan or not.
There is also a fan for the seat bottom, not sure where it is located off the top of my head.

Re: Seat ventilation fans stopped working

Thx Lud, I have the schematic from the repair manual that shows the location of both the seat back and seat cushion fans. I'm not going to go to that level of detail since it's still under warranty. Was just looking for a fuse\relay that I could 'easily' check on my own.

Guy, all of the fan speeds seem to be working to spec and the heating function is working for both seats so that's probably not it.

Re: Seat ventilation fans stopped working

OK, I need some more input here including you Austin J.

I understand where the fans are located as I have the schematic - one in the upper of the seat back and one in the front of the seat cushion. I also get that they don't blow a ton of air, but I always felt air rising from the seat 'crack' if you will - the area that separates the back from the cushion. I no longer feel it there or frankly anywhere.

Went to the dealer and they say it's all to spec - they all feel air from both seats but it's not coming from the 'crack'. Initially I was in the car with the tech when he said he felt air. When I said I did not he placed a sheet of plastic (similar to something from the cleaners) to cover the seat. No movement at all from the plastic but then he said 'sometimes this doesn't work'. He continued to research the issue and again came back and said it's working to spec.

They're nice at the dealer and all but they must think I'm a wack job. So here's my question to you all - with the seat ventilation function on 3 bars, do you feel any air coming from the space b/t the seat back and seat cushion? Based on the placing of the fans I'm guessing that's not necessarily the design but I swear I felt air coming from there which did provide a cooling function in our standard 100+ heat. Now I feel nothing at all.

Re: Seat ventilation fans stopped working

Hello spiketoo,

We’re glad to hear that you’ve been working with the dealer regarding this concern. We would be happy to follow up with them on your behalf to further assist with this situation. If interested, feel free to send us a private message with your full name, street address, phone number, best time to reach you, VIN, mileage, and your dealership. We look forward to hearing from you.